I don’t think of myself as a “faithful person”. Do I believe in G-d? Maybe. Do I believe in my religion? Yes.
I am kind of all over the place with who or what I believe in but is this affecting my life expectancy. More and more people have been asking the same question, so I decided to take a look.
Looking at the United States, “Religious Americans are reported to have more robust immune systems, lower blood pressure, and better recovery times from operations.” Attending religious institutions can help with stress management control, belonging to a supportive community and having a healthier lifestyle. “People who attended religious services at least once a week were 46 percent less likely to die during the six-year study, says lead author Harold G. Koenig, M.D., of Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina.” This supports people and builds them up to the best person they can be.
Now lets talk about happiness! Happiness is awesome! Something positive that faith brings to people is happiness! It gives someone a belief in something bigger than themselves. Being apart of any supportive religious institution helps to create an environment with less depression and anxiety, which leads to happiness, which in turn leads to a healthier and longer life. Places such as mosques, churches, and synagogues give people a sense of belonging and support.
In a research done, researchers tested people’s SWB (subject well-being). The SWB is how people experience their lives using emotional reactions and critical thinking. In this study, they saw how different peoples SMD were depending on their faith. When the researchers asked people who had strong faiths to list the characteristics of a good life they included happiness, health and longevity. In 2005, a study followed 866 coronary disease patients for 11 years all averaging 60 in age. In this time 415 deaths occurred. The studies findings suggested that the relationship between the patient’s happiness and mortality was mediated by the lack of a depressive emotion.
Basically, to sum this up studies have shown that on average people who have a strong connection to their religions have a higher SWB. Faith=happiness=longer life.
In conclusion, I am not saying that everyone who doesn’t have a strong faith will die. Although, it is proven that people with religious backgrounds live longer and happier lives!
Your blog illustrates that faithful people tend to be happier and lead a longer life, and I would like to analyze more about the underlying reason.
I quite agree with you that faith gives people “a sense of belonging and support”, and I believe this is the root of people living longer. Let’s see why. Human beings are actually social animals, and for social animals, there are social interactions like belonging to a level of social organization, living together with a group of people, or forming relationships after encounters with one another. “In the case of social animals, not having those social interactions can be detrimental to the animal’s development; they are crucial. These interactions and socializing help to develop emotional stability and flexibility for the span of the animal’s life.”– https://www.petfinder.com/dogs/dog-care/dogs-home-alone-all-day/ & http://dictionary.babylon.com/social%20animal/
I always like considering and asking “why”, because among the three parts (“what”, “how”, and “why”) we should consider when facing anything we want to analyze, “why” is the most profound one. Yet it is always those brains pondering “why” that push science forward.
I love that you wrote about this, and I definitely agree with what you said! Up until about 11th grade I went to church but I didn’t really consider myself very religious. Then about halfway through my junior year, I went through some extremely hard times, so I began spending more time in the church and becoming more rooted in my church. Since then, my happiness has improved more than I could ever imagine. That’s why I knew from the second I read your title, I knew that the answer would be that it does have an effect on your lifespan. This topic is very interesting to me — thank you for sharing it!
I was really interested when I came across your title, and was so happy to read your post. My family is not that religious but growing up I went through years of Catholic education and did all of the things you had to do to have your church recognize you. I struggle a little bit with faith sometimes, but I really do believe what you said is true. Seeing other people I know who do have a strong religious background do tend to be happier all the time and positive about things. They always seem to know in the worst of times someone is there looking over them and protecting them. Having faith gives people trust and belief that things will get better, which I guess leads to less stress, and a happier longer life like you said.
I thought your topic was very interesting. Personally, I have also struggled with faith and been “kind of all over the place with who or what I believe in,” so I can relate. Your question of if faith effects a person’s life span really sparked my curiosity, so it was interesting to see that there are actually studies testing this idea. Faith does help guide people, which may increase one’s happiness and decrease stress, so it does make sense that “faith=happiness=longer life.”